Imperial Presidency

Ron Paul blasts establishment in Ron Paul Channel debut

"Yesterday, Ron Paul launched his new internet media outlet. The fireworks began during the opening tease, with Paul claiming that President Obama 'perpetuates terror while he claims to prevent it' through his use of drone strikes to combat terrorism. The former Congressman and Republican presidential candidate also blasted the war on drugs and the Federal Reserve. That was all in the first minute. The highlight of the show was even more controversial: Paul’s exclusive interview with Glenn Greenwald. Greenwald has published the series of stories on Edward Snowden’s disclosures about the domestic surveillance activities of the NSA." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRon Paul blasts establishment in Ron Paul Channel debut

White House insists NSA surveillance review will be independent

"The White House has moved to dampen controversy over the role of the director of national intelligence James Clapper in a panel reviewing NSA surveillance, insisting that he would neither lead it nor choose the members. Statements by Barack Obama and Clapper were widely interpreted as the director of national intelligence being placed in charge of the inquiry, which the president had announced on Friday would be 'independent'. The apparent involvement of Clapper, who has admitted lying to Congress over NSA surveillance of US citizens, provoked a backlash, with critics accusing the president of putting a fox in charge of the hen house." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhite House insists NSA surveillance review will be independent

President’s Spy Review Commission Provides Unintended Comedy

"President Obama announced to great Beltway fanfare late last week that he was setting up a commission to review the policies and procedures of the NSA. This was announced as part of a larger reform of NSA surveillance that the president promised, including inserting an adversarial 'privacy rights' voice in the secret FISA Court proceedings. And…who has the president tasked with setting up this NSA spying review group? The same guy who lied to Congress about NSA spying in the first place! We can only guess who might be appointed as the FISA Court’s 'privacy rights' advocate — maybe Diane Feinstein?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPresident’s Spy Review Commission Provides Unintended Comedy

‘Most members of Congress have not even seen the secret legal interpretations’ behind FISA

"President Obama’s stated desire for an 'open debate and democratic process' about the U.S. government’s surveillance activities met with open disbelief by a prominent former congressional staffer — Jennifer Hoelzer, who recently left service as deputy chief of staff to Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon). Hoelzer noted that she had been explicitly barred earlier this year from publicly discussing her senator’s reasons for opposing a bill that contained a loophole giving the NSA the apparent authority to run searches on Americans without any kind of warrant. Supporters of the legislation, however, were free to issue press releases touting its value to the public." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘Most members of Congress have not even seen the secret legal interpretations’ behind FISA

James Bovard: Obama, NSA, Gulf of Tonkin, & Governing as Lying

"This is the 49th anniversary of Congress’s passage of the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, by which the Lyndon Johnson administration lied the nation into the Vietnam War. Last night, President Obama appeared on the Jay Leno show and declared: 'We don’t have a domestic spying program.' He explained: 'What we do have are some mechanisms where we can track a phone number or an email address that we know is connected to some sort of terrorist threat.' Why would Obama continue to shovel such bilge? Does he assume that no one has read a newspaper for the past 2 months, or what?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJames Bovard: Obama, NSA, Gulf of Tonkin, & Governing as Lying

Obama’s Response To NSA Surveillance Still Lacking Justification

"It's a lot of rhetoric about transparency, with a few random claims about how important these programs are. Separately, he continued to insist that we're better than some other countries (setting the bar low) and that we don't spy on Americans -- despite the evidence from this morning that this isn't true. In answering questions, he insisted the two key programs being discussed, Section 215 of the Patriot Act and 702 of the FISA Amendments Act, were critical to finding important intelligence -- despite the fact that multiple Senators have insisted that there remains no evidence that Section 215 was necessary in any terrorist case." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama’s Response To NSA Surveillance Still Lacking Justification

Julian Assange: Obama ‘validated’ Snowden as a whistleblower

"WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has called President Barack Obama’s announcement of plans to limit sweeping U.S. government surveillance programs a victory of sorts for fugitive former spy agency contractor Edward Snowden. 'Today was a victory of sorts for Edward Snowden and his many supporters,' Assange said in the statement, which was posted on the WikiLeaks website on Saturday. Assange accused the U.S. government of 'stunning' hypocrisy in its treatment of Snowden while it gave asylum to thousands of dissidents, whistleblowers and political refugees from countries like Russia and Venezuela." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJulian Assange: Obama ‘validated’ Snowden as a whistleblower

Pepe Escobar: Vlad the Hammer vs Obama the Wimp

"Vlad the Hammer can sense a wimp of Carter-esque proportions like a polar bear hunting a seal. He quickly evaluated how the Obama administration turned its already shaky credibility to ashes on two simultaneous fronts; because of the scale of the Orwellian/Panopticon complex detailed by Snowden's leaks, and because of the way he was being mercilessly hunted. The New York Times posted an editorial justifying the cancelation of the summit, saying, 'Mr Putin is a repressive and arrogant leader who treats his people with contempt.' Right; and Snow White lives in the White House." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPepe Escobar: Vlad the Hammer vs Obama the Wimp

Snowden revelations force Obama’s hand on surveillance program

"After his administration issued repeated defenses of a National Security Agency monitoring program that collects Americans' phone and Internet data, Obama announced during a press conference Friday afternoon that reforms to the system will make the collection activities more transparent and 'give the American people additional confidence that there are additional safeguards against abuse.' Officials will also launch a new website next week that will serve as 'a hub for further transparency' for interested members of the public." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSnowden revelations force Obama’s hand on surveillance program